(1947)
2
Craig Butler
Laraine Day is beautiful and John Wayne is macho in Tycoon, but beauty and masculine bravado can only go so far. Certainly Tycoon wants to be a grand epic romance, a tremendous adventure that is laced with torrid longings. It ends up being a mess. The blame lies primarily with the writing, which labors to create drama and atmosphere and only creates boredom. The dialogue alternates between cringe-inducing and banal and the characterizations are stock all the way. One watches the film begging for a character to say or do something unexpected. The plotting lacks credibility, and features the kinds of twists that are meant to cause excitement and raise emotions but which instead make one shake one's head in disbelief. Director Richard Wallace tries to imbue the film with a sense of grandeur, but there's only so much that can be done with the material at hand. Wayne and Day also have to deal with carrying a film that gives them no foundation. Day fails utterly, but Wayne's determination and perseverance shine through. His is by no means a great performance, but it does keep one's interest. There's also valuable support from Cedric Hardwicke, Judith Anderson and Anthony Quinn. Not enough to make Tycoon good, but enough to make it bearable.
cast-crew for Tycoon on AllMovie
Tycoon (1947)
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